1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to containers for automatically dispensing a selected product into a toilet bowl tank. More particularly, the invention relates to a float controlled dispenser for dispensing metered amounts of a liquid into the toilet tank and separately dispensing a quantity of water colorant.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Automatic dispensing devices for dispensing disinfectant or cleanser into toilet bowl tanks are well-known. A representative type of dispenser for releasing a measured amount of fluid into a toilet tank is, for example, shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,698,021 (Mack et al.) assigned to the assignee hereof. While all known automatic toilet tank liquid dispensers are able to dispense predetermined liquid mixtures with varying degrees of efficiency, all of the known dispensers are used relatively stable solutions which are then dispensed in measured amounts over extended periods of time. The contents of these dispensers, for example, may comprise a variety of active ingredients such as, for example, a detergent cleanser or a disinfectant liquid, but in all cases the dispenser contents must be retained in the dispenser for relatively long intervals between metered uses. This necessarily means that the contents must be stable for long periods. This stability is also necessary during warehouse storage of the dispenser, prior to purchase by consumers. Warehouse temperatures may be expected to reach 100.degree. F. to 125.degree. F. and, since chemical reactions within dispensers tend to increase as a function of ambient temperature, it is important to segregate unstable substances prior to use. Therefore, any active ingredients within prior art dispensers cannot be mixed with other ingredients if a solution having some unacceptable instability would be produced thereby.
One disadvantage of the prior art dispensers is that they are incapable of dispensing a colored active ingredient such as a disinfectant solution comprising a dye incompatible with the disinfectant. While surfactant-based dispenser contents remain stable when dyed to a variety of colors, bleach-based contents are unstable over long periods. For example, a disinfectant such as hypochlorite would be expected to oxidize any dye so that the resultant solution would relatively quickly become colorless and neutral. Since the advantages of using dye to produce a visual indication of the dispenser contents are well known, it would be desirable to produce a colored disinfectant solution so that there would be some visual indication that the dispenser has ceased being effective. In order to produce such a solution which is colored for a time sufficiently long to be of practical use, the active ingredient and dye must be kept separated as long as possible prior to being dispensed in metered amounts.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a toilet tank dispenser capable of dispensing a measured amount of disinfectant and dye into the tank.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a toilet tank dispenser for dispensing measured amounts of an active ingredient and separately dispensing a dye into the tank.